Casino Site Land Nets Big Bucks

The first blackjack hand won`t be dealt on Joliet`s new downtown riverboat until next summer, but some people are already walking away with boatloads of cash.

A review of purchase prices for land slated for development reveals some owners are getting many times the appraised value of their property.

But despite the higher-than-expected payoffs for property owners, the project still faces uncertainties.

Preservationists are hoping to save a 100-year-old building that sits squarely in the middle of the project, and the city has not yet acquired all the land needed for dockside development.

The done deals already have gobbled up all of a $3.75 million fund set up by Harrah`s Casino Hotels, the Memphis-based developer of the project.

As a result, the company has been forced to put another $1 million in the pot to complete land acquisition.

``The city got its appraisals and the owners got theirs,`` Tim Wilmott, Harrah`s general manager for the project, said Wednesday. ``A funny thing happened. They didn`t agree.``

Harrah`s, however, was willing to increase its stake to make sure it did not become embroiled in potentially lengthy condemnation suits that could delay the project.

Although the project was to be up and running last summer, there have been numerous delays that almost caused the state Gaming Board to revoke the license in October.

Loss of the project would have been a catastrophe for city officials, who hope the $50 million development will spark a downtown resurgence.

The city, which is purchasing the land from individual owners on behalf of Harrah`s, will not reveal any purchase prices. But other sources, including the sellers themselves, say many times the appraised value is being paid for the 4 acres along the Des Plaines River.

Mayor Arthur Schultz acknowledged the land was going at premium prices.

``The prices are very high,`` Schultz said. ``But it`s Harrah`s money, not the city`s. If it were city money, I would be concerned.``

City Atty. Thomas Thanas, who is handling the purchase on behalf of Harrah`s, acknowledges that the land along the riverfront is selling for prices far beyond appraisals.

Thanas said he will not jeopardize the project by making the sale prices public until after all the land is acquired, fearing that such information could spur a land boom.

The city has warned sellers not to discuss prices and exempted Harrah`s from normal title and transfer taxes.

By far the biggest parcel on the riverboat site belonged to Vidmar Buick, an auto dealership at the southeast corner of Joliet and Cass Streets for more than 50 years.

The dealership reportedly got $1.9 million for the site, and $100,000 to help it relocate to the city`s west side. The land had been valued at $900,000 by an independent appraiser, but only $300,000 by city estimates.

Fred Schuber, general manager of the dealership, said owner Fred Vidmar was reluctant to leave the location, but he ``got a fair price.``

``He didn`t want to sell and then have it cost him a lot of money to relocate,`` Schuber said.

Not everyone, however, was happy with their settlements.

Marie Kapteyn said she and her husband got ``less than $100,000`` for the building they bought about three years ago at 64 N. Des Plaines St. The couple buy and sell parts for vintage Studebaker cars and trucks.

Kapteyn said city negotiators drove a hard bargain.

``They were talking about condemnation,`` she said. ``We had no choice but to sell. Everybody is angry, but we have no voice.``

Two buildings and land belonging to Eby-Brown Co. of Joliet, a distributor of grocery store sundries at 118 W. Van Buren St., were reportedly appraised at $80,000.

On Tuesday, a state preservation agency told city fathers that one of the buildings, built in the 1890s, should be spared and made a cornerstone of the parking and pavilion plans.

Estimates of the property`s selling price range from about $330,000 to $800,000, a figure complicated by an arrangement to relocate the firm.

Sources said Joliet officials used $250,000 in city money to buy the former Jewel Food Store on Jackson Street for Eby-Brown`s new home.

Other purchases include Joliet Ceramic Arts & Crafts, 25 S. Joliet St., which was appraised at $65,000 and sold for $110,000 plus $10,000 for moving expenses; and Tom Crownover & Associates, an income tax and bookkeeping service at 131 W. Jefferson St., which was appraised at $25,000 and sold for $55,000, according to the sources.

The city also got $1.2 million to demolish and relocate a fire station.